Wear Clean Underwear: Business Wisdom From Mom

Rating:
Summary: Insightful!
Review: Columnist, consultant, and best-selling author Rhonda Abrams has written a clever and enjoyable book that compiles the simple wisdom of motherly advice into a basic primer on ethical business behavior. Without offending the mothers of the world, this isn't a book to read if you're looking for real-world management technique. It is however an entertaining and sometimes inspiring collection of aphorisms that is especially compelling when presenting luminaries like Southwest Airline's Herb Kelleher expounding on the virtues taught them by their own moms. We [...] recommend this book as a refreshing break, and as a great gift.


Rating:
Summary: Love this Author!
Review: I have both of Rhonda Abrams' other books, The Successful Business Plan and The Successful Business Organizer. So I knew I wouldn't be disappointed with this wonderful book. It's very different from Rhonda's other books -- this is a narrative of great companies, including examples of how they became great and what keeps them prosperous. It's so well-written as well as insightful. It's really a gem of a book. Gave me specific things I could put to use in my own business --- especially in dealing with customers. This is one of my favorite books, ever. I'm giving this for gifts, even to my non-business friends. (You'll love the story about Odwalla, guaranteed!)

Rating:
Summary: The business textbook with integrity and heart!
Review: If you snickered at the title Wear Clean Underwear, you are not alone. Who could resist the pull of familarity of mom's wisdom?. We go back and remember our childhood, and read on to see the foundation of a solid future. This is wisdom like no other. Wear Clean Underwear is the best business book I have read. Rich with examples from real life and big business, this book is all you'll ever need for genuine business success. Wear Clean Underwear is about integrity and character, and you can bet you'll learn about, cheer, and affirm both as you walk through the pages of this book. You will find it warm, inspiring and full of business "smarts." It is a nourishing book stocked with lots of meat and potatoes, and delivers some mighty fine just desserts. And even though its wisdom has come down through the ages, Wear Clean Underwear is one of a kind, fresh, and current. I'm sure it's a book that'll be around for a long time, and probably for all time. It is a fun and joyful read that gives light to the business of making money while doing what right. And this book is right on, right on time.

Rating:
Summary: Good book with a lousy title
Review: Whatever possessed the author and publisher to call a business book Wear Clean Underwear? It's hard to recommend a book with that title to a class or business group. And why does the author need to package some good info from a hard-hitting female business consultant as "advice from mom?" Female leaders (e.g., Colleen of Southwest Airlines) are the moms. We even have a direct analogy to June Cleaver. The book's got some good stuff. The stories about 3M and Southwest Airlines are great. They can stand on their own without the cutesy chapter titles. Not everybody has a mom who dispenses helpful advice with the cookies. Not every female executive can or wants to be a mommy-type nurturer. We were given few examples of women who were entrepreneurial at 3M or held other leadership roles in other companies. I also noticed that "great" seemed to mean "youth-oriented." Most of these companies grow their own talent, which means they will not open their doors to downsized midlife career changers. Finally, while Abrams describes some great companies, she does view some of them through rose-colored glasses. What about the Nordstrom quota system, for instance? And haven't there been labor problems at Ben and Jerry's? Whenever I give a talk and mention a "great" company, people come up afterwards to whisper, "Let me tell you my horror story about that company."

The book is fun to read and there are good lessons to be learned. They don't need to be sugar-coated or wrapped in paper lace.

Rating:
Summary: Great for anyone thinking of starting a business
Review: While the book's title is a little cute, the advice here is not. Abrams has done a tremendous amount of research about the nation's most successful and humane companies and proves that strong values are indeed compatible with a strong bottom line. As someone who has worked in small businesses all my life and often toyed with the idea of starting my own, it's reassuring to see that there are other companies who've been able to thrive without selling their souls (I just haven't worked for them!). A wonderfully inspirational--and informative--book.